Liquid feeder



Oct. 16, 1934.,

LIQUIDfFEDER Filed Feb. l24,1952

Fig. 4 j

INVENTOR GEORGE O. BRUMM ATTORNEY 1 G. o. BRUMM l 1,977,571

Patented Oct. 16, 1934 PATENT OFFICE LIQUID FEEDER George O. Brumm,Worcester, Mass., assignor to Oil Burner Products Company, Incorporated,Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Y Application February24, 1932, Serial No.'594=,853v

5 Claims.

This invention relates to liquid feeders, and more particularly tofeeders of the type having inverted bottles or tanks which supply oil tooil stoves, or burners, of the gravity feed type.

The bottle in such a construction is inverted over a shallowreservoirfrom which the oilflows to the place of consumption, the arrangementbeing such that as oil is withdrawn from the reservoir additional oilwill be discharged from the bottle into the reservoir to maintain theoil level therein constant. It is customary to provide the bottle with acap to prevent spilling of the oil after. the bottle has been filled andwhile it is being placed in inverted position 4above theY reservoir.'I'hecap is usually formed with a valve therein which opensautomatically when the bottle is mounted in operative position, to allowoil to flow into the reservoir. In the ordinary construction, the lowerend of the valve stem contacts with the bottom of .the reservoir,whereby the valve is forced open against the pressure of a coil spring.

It is found that under certain circumstances the valved caps of theprior art do not allow the necessary quantity of oil to ow into thereservoir. As a result the oil'level in the reservoir is lowered, thecombustion rate decreases, and the flame eventually becomesextinguished. I have discovered that this difficulty is caused by theformation of i a film or scum of oil which prevents the entrance of airinto the bottle and thus stops the feeding of oil. This lm usually formsover the coil spring 'which is commonly used in these devices, but itmay form on other parts also and particularly over openings in verticalwalls. I believe that the film formation is a phenomenon caused 'by thesurface tension of the oil, and I have foundithatthe greatest diiiicultyis usually encountered at night, when the oil feed is turned low and the`house is quiet. During the day there is ordinarily sufiicient vibrationfrom people walking near the burner to prevent detrimental filmformation. 1

It is the main object of 'my invention to overcome these difculties andtoprovide a liquid feeder comprising a valved bottle closure which canbe applied to thefusual oil bottle in common use today andwhich is soconstructed that no oil film can form thereon to block the free deliveryof oil to the reservoir. l

It is a further object of the invention to provide a liquid feedercomprising a simple, inexpensive and easily manufactured device whichwill effectively preventspilling of oil from the bottle as it is beingmounted overrthe reservoir,v and which will ensure the maintenanceof aconstant level of oil in the reservoir at all times.

With these and other objects in view, as will i be apparent to thoseskilled in the art, my inven. tion resides in the combination of partsset forth in the specification and covered by the claims appendedhereto. f

In accordance with my inventionl provide, in

combination with a liquid reservoir and an inverted bottle, a bottleclosure comprising a vcap which is adapted to be mounted on the bottleand which can be easily removed therefrom when the bottle requiresrefilling. The cap is preferably circular` in shape and provided with anupwardly extending cylindrical shell having screw threads formed thereonto `fit suitable threads on the outside vof the bottle. A vertical valvestemis slidable axially through the cap, and this stem carries a valvelocated above the cap and arranged to control the flow through anopening in the cap. A coil spring surrounds the valve stem below the capand urges the valve downwardly toward closed position, the spring beingso located with respect to the opening that fluid may flow therethroughwithout passing through the coils ofthe spring. In the preferredconstruction the spring extends between the lower surface of the cap anda suit yable abutment, such as an enlarged head, on the valve stem, andthe opening in the cap is located outside of the spring.

Referring to the Vdrawing illustrating one emrbodiment of the inventionand in which like reference numerals indicate like parts,

Fig. 1 is an elevation, partly in section, showing `an apparatus forsupplying oil to an oil stove or burner;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail of the valved bottle closure,shown insection on the line 2-2 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the closure' shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to a portion of Fig. 1,

showing a modification; and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of the bottle supporting deviceillustrated inA Fig. 4.'

The embodiment illustrated in the drawing comprises the usual oilreservoir or pan 1()V from which a pipe 11 leadsto the oil burner (notshown) This reservoir 10 is formed with a laterally projecting apertured1ug12 which fits a vertical supporting post 14. A set screw 15 serves tofasten the lug 12 to the post at any desired height. The post is mountedat its lower end in a suitable base 16 arranged to rest upon the floor.i

Y Above the reservoir 10 I have shown the usual inverted oil bottle Yortank 18, lwhich is ordinarily Cil Pie

`opening in the cap 25.

formed of glass and provided with a comparatively small downwardlyextending cylindrical neck 19. A valved closure 20 is attached to thelower end of this neck. The bottle is held at its upper portion betweenclamps 22 mounted on the postv 14, and the weight of the bottle issupported on aledge or shelf 23 formed integral with the reservoir andextending partially beneath the closure 20.

This closure 20, with which the present invention is principallyconcerned, is shown inA detail in Figs. 2 and 3. The preferredconstruction illustrated comprises a cap 25 shown as a fiat circularplate adapted to be Vapplied rto the lower end of the bottle neck. Aflat annular gasket 26 of a suitable yieldable material is provided onthe upper surface of the cap to contact with the bottle and form a tightjoint. While the cap 25 may be held in place by various means, I preferto utilize a cylindrical shell 27 which projects upwardly 'from theouter edge thereof. This shell is provided With screw threads 28.whichare shaped lto fit similar threads formed on the outer surface of thebottle neck 19, as shown in Fig. l. The fs'hell and cap are preferablyintegral, 'and they may be drawn from a single piece of a suitable sheetmetal, such as brass. It will be apparent that this constructionprovides a simple, inexpensive, and readily removable closure for thebottle 18.

In order that oil may flow from thebottle into the reservoir to maintainthe desired level therein, it is necessary to provide an opening in thecap 25. It is furthermore desirable that this opening should be closedautomatically when the bottle is removedfrorn the reservoir to be lled,'so that no oil will be spilled during the removal vor replacement ofthe bottle.

v For this purpose I have provided a vertical valve stem 30 which isslidable axially through acentral On the upper end of the valve stem aflat circular valve disk 31 is'mounted. In the preferred constructionthe valve stem is slightly reduced in diameter at the top to iit a.small central hole in the valve, and the stem is headed over or upset tohold the disk inplace. The valve disk 31 'is somewhat smaller inVdiameter than the interior of the bottle neck 19, and yet it is largerin diameter than the central opening in the annular gasket 26, so thatit may contact with the gasket and form a tight joint. The valve stem 30is preferably made from an ordinary rivet having an enlarged head 32 atits lower end which provides an abutment. A coil spring the reservoirand maintain the desired oil level therein. Iv have illustrated a caphavingY two of 'these openings, arcuate in shape and located on oppositesides of the valve stem, but itgwill be `understood thatvthe shape ornumber of the openings may be varied without departing from the scope ofmyfinvention. It is however important that-these openings belocatedoutside of the spring 34:y and in a position to be closed by thevalvedisk when the-bottle "is removed from the reservoir. VIn -theApreferred 'construct-ion operation.

illustrated the outer edges of these openings 36 are curved in the arcof a circle having the same diameter as the central opening in theannular gasket 26, and their inner edges are curved in an arc of assmall a radius as possible while retaining suicient metal at the center`to support the valve stem and spring.

In Figs. 4 and 5 I have shown a slightly modified construction forsupporting the weight of the bottle 18. Instead of resting upon a shelfintegral with the reservoir, the bottle is carried by` Aa bracket 38mounted on the valve stem 3U. This bracket may be formed from a flatstrip of kmetal by bending the end portions 39 thereof up- Wardly,-andproviding a central circular opening 40 to t the valve stem.

The operation of the invention will now be apparent from rthev abovedisclosure. When the bottle 18 requires relling, it is removed from thereservoir and the closure 20 is unscrewed. Oil is poured into thebottle, the'closure is replaced, and the Ybottle is then inverted,leakage being prevented lby the valve 31, which .isheld closed by thespring 34. The bottle is mounted between the clamps 22 with the cap 25resting on either the ledge 23 or the bracket 38. The head 32 of thevalve `stern strikes the bottom of the `reservoir, thus raising thevalve 31 and allowing oil to ow into the reservoir through-the openings36. Whenever the oil levelin the reservoir drops Aslightly below thelower 'surface of the cap 25., air is free to enter` the bottle throughthe openings 36 and thus allow oil Yto iiowV out and restore the desiredlevel. .This incoming air does not iiow between the coils `of the spring34, and there is nothing upon which a film of oil may form to block theoperation. lHence the normal oillevel in the reservoir will bemaintained irrespective of the rate at which oil is Withdrawn therefrom,`and there is no possibility of the .burner becoming extinguishedthrough lack of oil, so long as there isa supply in the bottle.

The bottle closure which I have disclosed can be readily applied to thetype of oil bottle which is in common use. It is constructed from a fewparts and is comparatively simple and-inexpensive to manufacture.Notonly is the coil spring out of the path of the oil iiow,;but itisalso well supported by the valve stem. There isnothing which can getout of order or cause trouble` in Having thus described vmy invention,what! claim as new and desire :toY secure by Letters Patent is: v

1. In combination with a liquid reservoir and abottle mounted in aninverted position above too iles

iao

`the reservoir to feed liquid thereto and maintain y a constant level ofliquid therein, a closurefor the'lower fend of the bottle comprising asubstantially horizontalcap releasably fastened tothe .f

bottle, a valve stem slidable vertically through the cap, a valvemounted on the valve stem above the cap, the cap having an openingthereinwhich is controlled by the valve, and a coil spring surroundingthe valve stem below the cap and arranged to urge the valve downwardly`toward its closed position, the opening being located outside of thespring so that iiuid may iiow through the opening without passingthrough the coils of the spring.

2. Incombinat'ion with a liquid reservoir and a bottle lmounted in aninverted position above the reservoir to feed liquid thereto andmaintain a constant level of liquid therein,r a closure for Gli tiallyhorizontal circular cap, a cylindrical screwthreaded shell projectingupwardly from the outer edge thereof and serving to fasten the cap tothe bottle, a valve stem slidable vertically through the cap, a valvemounted on the valve stem above the cap, the cap having an openingtherein which is controlled by the valve, and a coil spring surroundingthe valve stern below the cap and arranged to urge the valve downwardlytoward its closed position, the opening being located outside of thespring so that fluid may flow through the opening Without passingthrough the coils of the spring.

3. In combination with a liquid reservoir and a bottle mounted in aninverted position above the reservoir to feed liquid thereto andmaintain a constant level of liquid therein, a closure for the lower endof the bottle comprising a substantially horizontal cap releasablyfastened to the bottle, a valve stem slidable vertically through thecap, said stem having an enlarged head at its lower end, a coil springsurrounding the valve stem and extending between the lower surface ofthe cap and said head, the cap having an opening extending verticallytherethrough and located outside of the spring, and a valve mounted onthe valve stem above the cap, said valve when in its lowermost positionserving to close said opening.

4. In combination with a liquid reservoir and a bottle mounted in aninverted position above the reservoir to feed liquid thereto andmaintain a constant level of liquid therein, a closure for the lower endof the bottle comprising a circular cap, means to fasten the cap to thebottle, an annular gasket located between the upper surface of the capand the lower end of the bottle, said able valve mounted above the cap,said valve,

when in its lowermost position contacting with the gasket and thusserving to close the opening in the cap, and a coil spring arranged tourge the valve downwardly toward its closed position, the opening in thecap being so located with respect to the spring that fluid may owthrough the opening without passing through the coils of the spring.

5. In combination with a liquid reservoir and a bottle mounted in aninverted position above the reservoir to feed liquid thereto andmaintain a constant level of liquid therein, a closure for the lower endof the bottle comprising a circular cap, means to fasten the cap to thebottle, an annular gasket located between the upper surface of the capand the lower end of the bottle, said gasket having a central openingtherein, a vertical Valve stem slidable axially through the center ofthe cap, a coil spring surrounding the valve stem below the cap andarranged to urge the valve stem downwardly, and a valve mounted on thevalve stem above the cap, the cap having an opening therethrough locatedoutside of the spring and registering with the opening in the gasket,and the valve when in its lowermost position contacting with the gasketand thus serving to close the opening in the cap.

GEORGE O. BRUMM.

